


nothing has changed me quite like you

by iPhone



Category: Pitch Perfect (Movies)
Genre: Bechloe Week, Bechloe Week 2020, F/F, Fluff, Friendship, References to Chloe sleeping with another person, Romance, There is a dog named Juniper
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-07-28
Updated: 2020-07-28
Packaged: 2021-03-05 23:46:24
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,729
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25563808
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/iPhone/pseuds/iPhone
Summary: Chloe Beale and her shetland sheepdog, Juniper, make quite the pair. Set after PP3.
Relationships: Chloe Beale & Beca Mitchell, Chloe Beale/Beca Mitchell
Comments: 43
Kudos: 221





	nothing has changed me quite like you

**Author's Note:**

> Fic title from "Nothing Is U" by Bleachers. Written for Bechloe Week Day 2 - He bit me! Wrote this after a burst of inspiration tonight. I based Juniper on my own Shetland Sheepdogs who have already passed away, but they were my babies. 
> 
> Unbeta'd, sorry.

Chloe adopts Juniper from her uncle when she moves up to Ithaca to begin her veterinary school education. Juniper is a happy dog, incredibly enthusiastic about walks, and happy to lie on top of Chloe’s chest to wake her up in the morning.

Chloe had always wanted a dog again since her childhood dog had long passed away. However, living at Barden hadn’t really allowed for it in her first year there. Then living in a house constantly filled with loud, singing women...that hadn’t been the time either.

She had thought maybe—maybe when she moved into an apartment with Beca, her longtime crush and (even more) longtime friend, would have been the time. But no. Amy happened. And their tiny apartment happened. Their tiny apartment which meant that Chloe spent cold, sleepless nights trying not to cuddle too close to Beca, lest she startle her and send her running away for good. Those cold, lonely, sleepless nights spent wondering if Beca would ever reciprocate her feelings.

The nights spent after Beca and Jesse’s Breakup™. The nights spent falling asleep together after another bad Netflix movie.

The nights spent together after nights out. Sleeping only, of course.

All the nights.

It almost made Chloe forget about wanting a dog—about wanting a companion. Almost. It would have just been difficult to have a dog in such a small face while nobody was really _home_ to take care of a dog.

(But it had made Chloe smile—widely too—when she had mentioned it offhandedly to Beca. The whole ‘having a dog’ thing. A rather domestic suggestion, if Chloe thought about it for too long. She had almost been afraid about bringing it up even hypothetically to Beca. It felt like a step she hadn’t been sure about taking even though they weren’t even _anything_. But still. Beca liked dogs and would have liked a dog of her own—their own?—if it weren’t for their roommate and their living conditions.

That was a win to Chloe.

Beca liked dogs. Nobody was taking that away from her.)

Finally, Chloe moved upstate. Upstate where it was easier to get a spacier apartment; where there was that much more greenery. Many more accessible parks to run.

It was finally time to get a dog.

Finally, then came Juniper—a force of energy rolled into one fluffy Shetland Sheepdog.

* * * * *

Juniper is a happy dog.

So happy to the extent that Chloe is surprised the first time she attempts to bring somebody back to her apartment. She brings back a nice woman from the Pharmacy School after a surprisingly refreshing date. They barely make it into the apartment when Juniper immediately begins leaping at their legs, surprisingly excited and over-eager for the rather late hour.

“Shh,” Chloe hushes, smiling apologetically at her date. “Sorry, she’s not usually like this. Um...here, let me grab your jacket. I can make us some tea or something.” She tries not to sound too desperate. “If you want to stay for a little.”

Valerie smiles—a pretty smile entirely too reminiscent of another brunette with blue eyes—and nods. “I’d love to.”

“Great!” Chloe exclaims, a bit too high-pitched for her liking. She turns so Valerie can’t see her wince. Valerie doesn’t necessarily need to _know_ exactly how long it’s been since she was...super intimate in any sense of the word. Herself not included. “I’ll be back,” she calls over her shoulder, clutching her date’s jacket in her hand.

Juniper obediently follows her to the kitchen, little nails tapping against the hardwood. “You can do this,” Chloe murmurs to herself, opening cabinets as she searches for a good mug to use. “You can do this, right Junie?” she asks, bending down to coo at her dog. Juniper yelps, tail wagging happily as she flits around Chloe’s leg, clear herding instincts coming out. “She’s not Beca. I mean. Who is. But she’s pretty. And nice.” She glances at Juniper as if her dog is listening to her attentively. “She’s pretty nice,” she chirps, smiling at Juniper.

Juniper offers no feedback, other than a brush of her nose against Chloe’s leg.

Chloe sighs, bringing the mugs back out to her living room.

* * * * *

“Ow!”

Chloe draws back quickly, immediately pushing herself up on the couch and peering down at her date nervously. A small yelp of pain isn’t necessarily the reaction she’s used to unless discussed beforehand with her bedmates.

“Sorry,” Chloe whispers, hushed. “Did I bite you?”

Valerie sits up at well, cheeks still flushed attractively, lips still swollen from their make-out session. Chloe’s eyes don’t even wander to her half-unbuttoned shirt. “No, I think—your dog did?”

“My wha—” Chloe twists on the couch, peering around in the low light. She sees Juniper sitting up, alert yet somehow still innocent, in her dog bed in the corner of the living space. “She’s…”

“I didn’t imagine it. She definitely bit me.”

“No, I believe you, she’s just not normally—she likes other people.”

Valerie laughs, sitting up all the way and beginning to button up her shirt. Juniper perks up at that and scurries over, as if she is excited to watch Chloe very much not have sex.

“You don’t have to go,” Chloe urges, though she isn’t sure why she even wants to protest. “I’m—I mean we can—”

“Look, you’re very nice, but I guess...I just want to be friends.”

“Oh. I’m...that’s okay. I don’t…” Chloe finds she isn’t extremely disappointed, just a little stunned that her evening is ending so quickly. Though she has no extreme connection to Valerie—no lingering passion—she is still relatively disappointed by the lack of sex in her life. She sighs, deflating. “I’ll get your jacket.”

* * * * *

Chloe doesn’t think much of it. It’s just a pattern of behaviour that she assumes Juniper has developed. She doesn’t really _bite_ people—she just nips. Regardless, Chloe knows it isn’t behaviour that she should encourage by any means. She just assumes Juniper is a little protective of her. A little territorial.

It isn’t until weeks later that another major incident occurs. Chloe has since learned not to really go back to her own apartment with dates, with this one being an exception.

Mark is a PhD student at the engineering school. She meets him through a veterinary school friend and they had agreed to go on a date together. One thing had led to another and they had ended up tucked away in Chloe’s room after their date (Juniper had been locked out of her room on purpose) and well—

It’s fun. That much Chloe can say. It isn’t until later, with Mark’s heavy snoring next to her that she realizes that she hadn’t felt any real connection to him. But maybe, she muses, it’s too early to tell. It had been one date. And she had felt enough of a connection to sleep with him, even though it isn’t something she does regularly. Putting out on the first date at least.

It is the next morning that everything becomes apparent.

Chloe wakes up alone, eyes blinking against the harsh sunlight of her room. She hears a strange sound, something that sounds like muffled yelling. Or whisper-yelling. She senses the distinct emptiness next to her and sighs, wondering if she even has time to be disappointed. Or if she had prepared herself adequately for this inadvertently.

She hears a bark. Followed by a hushing sound.

Chloe rolls her eyes. Sneaking past her dog. Typical.

Without more thought, Chloe pulls a robe around her and yanks open her bedroom door, wondering what she’ll see. She blinks at the scene in front of her and takes in the way Mark appears to be in a stand-off with Juniper.

She sighs, realizing he has probably encountered one of her behavioural issues. Her earlier annoyance aside, she tries to offer sympathy and clears her voice, making her presence known. “Oh, I’m so sorry, she’s—”

“Aren’t you a vet or something?” he asks, holding up one of his ruined shoes. The other, Juniper still holds in her mouth, her tail wagging enthusiastically. Like this is some game. “Can’t you train your dog better?”

“She’s not usually like this!” Chloe exclaims. “Junie, come here, baby. Stop that.”

“Do you know how expensive these shoes are?”

Chloe almost laughs at the expression on his face, but she remembers, fleetingly, how much Beca had valued her precious headphones. She supposes everybody has their hobbies.

“Give that back, you little—”

“Don’t be mean to her!” Chloe cries, attempting to intervene. “She’s just playing. Junie, come _here_ ,” she demands.

Mark scowls, continuing to tug at his remaining shoe. The one that isn’t covered in dog pee. Juniper refuses to let up, even growling a little as he tugs harder. She stands her ground with surprising force. Chloe wonders if she had imagined Mark’s arm muscles. Clearly nothing compared to a shetland sheepdog with something to prove.

She sighs, choosing instead to lean back against the wall. She pulls her robe tighter around herself, tucking the fabric to protect herself against the chill. At least she gets morning entertainment in the place of a one-night stand trying to run out on her.

“Hey—Hey!” Mark cries out, pulling his hand away, both shoes dropping to the ground. “She bit me!”

Chloe pushes off the wall, concerned.

“Are you okay?”

“I’m f—”

“I was talking to Juniper,” Chloe says shortly. “You were antagonizing her on purpose. Rule one of interacting with dogs.”

He has enough sense to look appropriately chastised, but still displeased with the entire situation.

She rises, holding out her hand to inspect his hand. “Let me see,” she murmurs.

“No, it’s okay. I’ll just go.”

Chloe watches the door slam behind him, Juniper by her side.

“Another one, huh, Junie.”

* * * * *

The next semester comes quickly enough, January creeping into February, then the early stages of March.

“Beca?” Chloe blinks, stunned. “What are you doing here? In the—in—?” Chloe peers out the door as if expecting a camera crew to surprise them in the middle of the hallway. This is some Punk’d energy Chloe feels. She hadn’t expected to see Beca for at least another few months, even if she has spent the last few months alone missing Beca terribly. “This isn’t L.A.,” she says slowly, wonder creeping into her voice. “You’re not in L.A.”

“I—surprise!” Beca spreads her arms, hesitant smile on her lips. Chloe gapes at her, noting how different Beca looks...yet completely the same. Maybe a little more...expensive, if Chloe had a word for it. Her jacket is sleek-looking, her hair is slightly curled and—

“Did you dye your hair?” Chloe asks, reaching out to touch the ends of Beca’s hair. “It’s so pretty…”

“Thank you,” Beca says, blushing. “You look...wow.”

Chloe touches her hair self-consciously. It’s tied up in a messy ponytail to match her oversized sweater and leggings. She hadn’t planned on seeing anybody today, intent on having a quiet study day. “Really?” she asks softly before she can help herself.

“Yeah, I—oh.” Beca pauses, looking down at Juniper who creeps between Chloe’s legs to peer up at Beca with interest. Chloe feels Juniper’s tail wagging against her legs. “Who’s this! Is this the cutie you always post about on Instagram?”

Hearing the high-pitched tone of Beca’s voice as she continues to talk to and about Juniper makes all kinds of affection shoot through Chloe’s body. That and something else. She smiles at Beca, realizing just how much she had missed the other woman over this time. While Beca had been off in L.A. making a name for herself, Chloe had missed her all the while, attempting to fill the voids that Beca had left behind.

“Yeah,” Chloe murmurs, watching as Beca holds out her hand for Juniper to sniff. “She’s just a little...temperamental with new people, I—” Chloe freezes, stunned when Juniper licks Beca’s hand and immediately pushes her body into Beca’s knees, clearly intent on receiving more cuddles.

“She’s adorable, Chlo.”

Chloe thinks she might cry. “She really is.” She clears her throat, battling the emotion away. “Do you want to...come in, or—?”

“I...okay. Yeah. I mean. I did come to visit you, but I’m telling you, she might take some attention away from you.”

Chloe scoffs. “As if that would ever happen,” she teases.

Beca hums, something non-committal, but not quite the immediate disagreement Chloe expects from her.

“Chloe?” Beca asks quietly as the front door shuts behind her. “Can I do something?”

Chloe turns, confused. She takes in the sight of Beca standing there in front of her with her expensive jacket and her expensive duffel bag (she hadn’t seen that before—did Beca intend on staying with her? In her one-bedroom, one-bed apartment?), with Juniper sitting obediently right next to her.

It is very much a picture of a girl with a mission, too weighed down by all her insecurities.

Chloe’s heart races. “Sure,” she whispers.

“I...wanted to do it the moment you opened the door. But I guess…” Beca smiles down at Juniper. “Needed the seal of approval first, huh.” She takes a step closer, dropping her bag gently at her feet. “I’m...Can I kiss you?”

That simple statement, said with such clarity and sincerity, snatches all the air from Chloe’s chest. She stumbles, eyes widening as she notes that Beca is standing right in front of her with nowhere else to go. Her favourite blue eyes, taking up her entire field of view.

“Chloe.”

“I—um. Yes. God, yes, please kiss me,” Chloe replies, wondering very much if this is still a dream.

"I just. Wasn't sure after Europe," Beca says stiltedly. Breathless, almost. She reaches up with shaking hands to put her hands around the back of Chloe's neck.

"Kiss me," Chloe whimpers.

So Beca does.

* * * * *

When Chloe wakes the next morning, she wakes up alone. Her heart pounds, wondering if Beca had left in the middle of the night. She lies, somewhere between dream and nightmare, too afraid to wake up and face the Pandora’s Box of her reality.

The previous night had been nothing short of amazing. Chloe struggles to find words to encapsulate the spectrum of emotions that had crashed through her the moment she and Beca finally got to know each other intimately. Wandering hands, heavy kisses, breathless pants, and the annoyingly rhythmic sound of Chloe’s bed creaking under the weight of two bodies finding their perfect match in each other.

It had been perfect.

Chloe wonders if anything will ever top their first time, now that she knows what it feels like to be wanted by Beca Mitchell. Beca, who flew across the country to pull Chloe into her arms and _kiss_ her. Not quite an “I love you” but also not quite a “Let’s be friends” either.

Chloe sighs, sitting up and letting the sheets fall around her. She is too afraid to check, but she has more faith in Beca than that. Her longtime friend. Her longtime crush. Her maybe-not-one-time lover.

“Hey,” Beca calls quietly as she pushes open the door. She is wearing one of Chloe’s old oversized shirts and a shy smile on her face. Her hair is delightfully rumpled, catching all the rays of sun that sneak into Chloe’s bedroom. In her arms, she holds a squirming Juniper who looks like she is very much attempting to lick Beca’s face or jump onto the bed. Or both.

Chloe almost gasps, but she only manages a shy smile of her own, stunned into silence for once.

“You’re here,” Chloe murmurs when she finds her voice.

Beca sits on the bed, gently letting Juniper squirm free from her arms. Juniper curls up at the foot of her bed, ears twitching excitedly. “I hope you don’t mind, I just gave her some food. She was waiting for us when I woke up.”

 _Us_ , Chloe thinks happily. She smiles, reaching out to grab the front of Beca’s shirt to draw her in for a kiss. Beca responds immediately, hands coming up to frame Chloe’s cheeks gently, tilting her head, like she is responding to Chloe’s unspoken word. _Us_ , she seems to echo in her kiss. _Look at us_.

Scratch perfection, Chloe thinks. This is all she needs.

**Author's Note:**

> Come say hi to me on [Tumblr](https://darby-carter.tumblr.com/)!


End file.
